Collins Lake

Robert Chappell caught this 7lb, 25 inch rainbow trout yesterday here at Collins Lake. Not a bad way to start the year! Looks like the rain is going to hold off for at least another week; We could use some rain but meanwhile get out and enjoy the winter air!

After 35 years at Collins Lake, Lincoln Young has retired from Collins Lake’s day to day management at year end 2020. This family-owned business is in great hands with the 3rd generation of Young’s & Palma’s solidly placed who know how to love & care for the facilities, customers & staff of Collins Lake. Lincoln’s son, Jacob Young will start as the new General Manager starting New Year’s day.

Dec 24th we close at noon Dec 25th the gate will be closed all day (no day use) Dec 26th we open at 7am for normal hours Merry Christmas!

Dec 18th Fishing Report: https://collinslake.com//2/12/18/clear-days-great-fishing/ After a knockout November we saw a strong first half of December...

Winter mornings at Collins Lake! December 14th, 2020

After over an inch of rain yesterday the skies cleared and made for a perfect morning for fishing along the shoreline below Camp #56, where John caught this Rainbow Trout on Yellow PowerBait

Fishing report: https://collinslake.com//fall-planting-gives-trout-a-boost/ Loads of trout this week! Water temperatures have stayed low with the surface now down around 67F. Weekly trout planting will continue through Thanksgiving! ... It's beautiful up here, wherever you are, make time to get outside and enjoy it!

Fall Trout planting started up last week and will continue each week through Thanksgiving. Logan & Ella caught these two trolling Rapalas on the surface- a day earlier they caught trout on Rattlemasters along the main channel. The lake is 48ft from full, clear with a surface temperature of 68F.

Winds have shifted and it's not as clear as yesterday... but it seems the trout prefer it that way- Channing maxed the scaled with his Catfish, Manny reels in a beautiful bass: https://collinslake.com//20lb-catfish-a-lone-bass-pre-smo/

No idea how long this will last but we'll take it! First blue skies in quite a while (September 18th, 2020 at 1pm).

Collins Lake is open as of Friday 6:30am. Expect smoky conditions throughout the weekend. Visit https://collinslake.com for the most recent status. Campfires are not permitted during Red Flag warnings or while crews continue to clean up and monitor the Willow Fire. Air quality changes hour to hour so we're not posting pictures; Generally it's been 1 to 5 mile visibility, occasionally less (under 0.5mi), occasionally more.

[OLD POST] Collins Lake was closed all day on Thursday, September 10th, 2020. We are grateful that our team is safe and that conditions have improved. Our phones are still disconnected; Check https://collinslake.com for current status.

[OLD POST] Wed, 9/9/2020: Collins Lake is CLOSED ALL DAY due to proximity to local fires. Please check https://collinslake.com for status updates.

https://collinslake.com/fishing//08/05/trout-till-daybreak/ Weekends are still busy and weekdays are better for fishing (less boat traffic) but if you're up for trout you need to be on the water before sunrise anyway. Quite a few catfish are coming out, you can catch them from shore on anything stinky but at the moment it seems a simple nightcrawler will do the trick.

People kept asking why the new kiosk building was built so tall. Well, now it looks complete with the beautiful new carved sign. Thank you local artist Ron Ramsey for your beautiful handwork. www.carvedbyramsey.com

Summer trout fishing is tough, but it helps to have a downrigger to troll into the deeper, colder waters. Victor Hazlehurst of Hallwood, CA landed this 10 pound trout this week. Trolling with downrigger a at 40’ with flashers & nightcrawlers.

Weekday getaway? Avoid the weekend boaters! Trout are down, moderate bass activity, crappie are on the beds (!), bluegill in the rocks. Catfish are still hiding. https://collinslake.com/fishing/2020/06/16/and-were-back/ Have a recent photo or story from Collins Lake? Send it in (full quality/original) to [email protected] to get in our next report. The Fish Sniffer & Western Outdoor News both pickup stories and pictures from us.

https://collinslake.com/ now has current information on Day Use closures to prevent crowding. Status will be updated as it changes. Closures are based on shoreline and lake crowds, not parking, not time of day. The best days to come for Day Use to avoid being turned away are Monday though Thursday. Thanks for helping us stay open! Not all status changes will be posted to Facebook to reduce confusion since sometimes they bring old information to the top of your feed. Check the status on the website!

In order to mitigate crowding we may need to close day use periodically. We appreciate your flexibility & understanding.

Re-opening day today and families enjoying being outdoors again. This is practicing social distancing in a healthy way. Please read about the changes we've made in the status update PDF link at https://collinslake.com/ before you arrive.

Status Update at https://collinslake.com/ Make sure you read the details before you show up!

Collins Lake [was] Temporarily Closed There is a Status Update at https://collinslake.com/ please read the PDF linked in the announcement before coming.

Lots of BIG FISH in this fishing report including more than a couple over 9lbs! https://collinslake.com//trout-move-off-shore-fishermen-f/

Bobby came out fishing with his friend today and they landed these 9 1/4 pound and 9 3/4 pound trout trolling in the middle of the lake across from the main day use beach area.

We've received two plants since our last fishing report and more to come while the weather holds out... https://collinslake.com//wonderful-weather-for-winter-tro/

Looks like more good weather ahead. The bite is slower than spring but quite a few of the fish caught this winter are monsters! Top 10ft for trout, worms, PowerBait. The lake is 23ft from full, surface is STILL clear and around 50F. Read more on our fishing report: https://collinslake.com///casting-for-a-challenging-catch/

We sell CA Fishing & Hunting Licenses! Time to get off the fence and go fishing. Check out some of the first big Collins Lake Catches of 2020: Hayden S. with a 9.75 pounder and Channing Venegas with a 8.2lb & 5.3lb Rainbow caught yesterday 1/7/2019

Phil Rapin strikes again! Check out his catch in our Christmas fishing report... Collins Lake is 26ft from full, 51F surface temp, crystal clear and, at least today, it's beautiful out there! We are open 7am to 5pm for Coffee, Espresso, Ice Cream & PowerBait Mice Tails. https://collinslake.com/fishing/2019//28/christmas-catches/

Paul Palacios from Sacramento borrowed a Rapala from his buddy Stephen Silvera who said "You wanna catch big fish? Use this lure". Paul dragged this 12 pound behemoth Rainbow trout out of the top 10ft along the main buoy line in front of site #64 Tragically the lucky lure was pretty well destroyed (see photo in comments) Paul was lucky to be using 30lb braid when he landed the lunker.

December 14th - Lake is still CLEAR (see photos). The clouds parted earlier than forecast this morning. Potentially three days of good weather :) Level is 27.5ft from full, surface is 54F

December 8th 2019 - Jamie & Dereck Findley saw a break in the weather this morning and brought in this haul of rainbow trout before noon including two over 7lbs! Powerbait, "by the dam". The next few days are forecast to be nice hopefully the trout bite holds on too!

Today, December 3rd, 2019 - A high of 65F a gentle breeze and a peaceful campground. Collins Lake is open 7 days a week year-round. Our December hours are 7am to 5pm. Keep an eye out for sunny days like today!

Today, November 28th 2019, 9am with two trout already on the stringer - Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at Collins Lake! Note: Our general store closes at noon on Thanksgiving

Yet another monster- 9.7lbs caught by Steve Coats on his buddy's orange Brokenback Rapala, near the inlet only 2ft deep. Today - November 23rd 2019 Nice catch Steve!

Nick Rose with his 10 pound Rainbow Trout caught yesterday by the dam on orange PowerBait

Two more days 'till the weather is forecast to turn very(!) cold, wherever you are, get outside and enjoy the weekend! In addition to our Espresso menu, we just started brewing new Coffees by Vaneli's (Vienna & French Roast), ground fresh daily. If it's too cold come enjoy a hot treat... or if you're like most people up here, have an Ice Cream anyway :)

Today 11/14/2019 - Sara Wristen with a 5.6 pound trout caught on PowerBait at the north end (she an Joe caught 9 fish. Keith Lusk with a 5.25pound rainbow at the south end on PowerBait. Phil Rapin with a 9.8 pound trout caught on a Kastmaster on the western shoreline (@campsite 222). At least for the moment, shore fishing has overtaken trolling ;)

November 12th, 2019 - Perfect weather for kayaking! The forecast looks good through next Tuesday :D

What are you doing this week? Excellent fishing, lots of 5+ pounders and too many trout to post!

Brad Bryan of Yuba City landed this colossal 9.85lb Rainbow Trout on crankbait up at the north end near the bridge! This among quite a few 5lb+ trout this week and a sudden spike in bass activity. Fishing is great and if the weather holds out it may continue like this right through November.

October 28, 2019 @10am. Wind calmed down, still no estimate from PG&E on power restoration. We are OPEN and still serving Ice Cream & Espresso!

Collins Lake will have hot showers open at Road 3 by the beach from 8am-4pm daily during PGE PSPS electricity shutdowns. This is open to our local community without entry fees to the park. Showers are coin operated.

Trout fishing has picked up with the fall planting program well under way... https://www.collinslake.com//3000lbs-trout-planted-so-far/

Now serving Coffee & Espresso in all wind conditions :D Collins Lake is open normal business hours during PG&E Shutdowns. We still serve Ice Cream and, with our upgraded generator, coffee and espresso drinks!

Fall Trout Planting has Started! We received our first delivery of 1000 pounds with weekly plants to follow. Forecast highs in the 70's with a light breeze- looks like a great time to throw a line in the water! https://www.collinslake.com//fall-trout-planting-has-begun/

October 12, 2019 -PG&E has restored electricity to our area, come get your Vanilla Latte!

Today October 11th 2019, Beautiful peaceful morning

Collins Lake therapy for PG&E power shutdowns! School still closed? Get out of the house and trade your frustrations for family fun! We serve Ice Cream in all wind conditions- right now its calm and quiet (except for the generators)

Conditions are calm with winds forecast in the evening up to a max 14mph@8pm. Potentially a great day to grill hotdogs by the beach (and probably not a good day to be stuck at home!) - Store & Office are OPEN on generator power - Hookup campsites have water but no power - No coin operated showers - WE STILL SERVE ICE CREAM! (flavors in comments)... - WiFi works at the store (45 minutes free) - Campers Welcome - Day Use Welcome ($12/vehicle) See more

Sunshine peaking through the clouds... time for Collins Lake Ice Cream! We are open every day of the year for Espresso & Ice Cream (Except Christmas, we're closed on Christmas )

Fishing Report: Potential lake record catfish caught by Hilario Sandoval in front of campsite #116!

Tuesday, September 10th, 2019 - Sunrise @7am A serene season for camping & fishing!

Megan Cisneros with a bright smile and a beautiful trout caught on an Orange jig/dodger combo 20ft deep Come find your happy place @Collins Lake!